Prayers – Are Yours Being Answered?

Are your prayers being answered? Have the things that you’ve asked God for appeared before your very eyes? I know as Christians, we are told we have to pray.  We’re told we have to have a good, strong prayer life.  But how do you know if you doing it right?  Have all your prayers been answered already?

I remember many years ago sitting in church listening to a guest speaker.  He asked us if all of our prayers have been answered.  He then went on to say that God wants to give us all the things we ask Him for.  That was a surprise to me because when I thought about it, all of my prayers had not be answered.  Up until that point I just thought that if you got what you prayed for then God was saying “yes” but if you didn’t then God was saying “no”. I realized that I needed to do some more research about prayer.  So I asked God about it first & then I asked other Christians.  Most Christians described prayer and a ritualistic monologue where you sit & ask God for what you want then get up and walk away.  Then you just wait to see what happens. I had been doing that & all of my prayers had not been answered so it had to be more to it than that.  That was too vague for me.

As I asked myself what I really knew about prayer, I realized that with all the “new members” classes I had taken when I joined my previous church, instruction on how to pray was not included.  However, the church did offer a supplemental class called “Steps To Answered Prayer”,  so I took the class.  I wanted all my prayers to be answered and I didn’t want to be the reason they weren’t.  I needed to make sure I got this prayer thing right.  The class taught about the different types of prayer and gave simple explanations of each.  It was a great first step.  Over the years, I’ve done a lot of additional study about prayer and I’ve learned a lot about it, but I like to keep things simple so here are some of the basics.

Prayer is not a monologue, it is a conversation between you & God about things He has said in the Bible & how it relates to your daily earthly life.  It’s a direct line to God so you can get solutions to our problems & directions for our lives just like Jesus did in Luke 6:12-13 (cev); (About that time Jesus went off to a mountain to pray, and he spent the whole night there. 13 The next morning he called his disciples together and chose twelve of them to be his apostles) when he had to choose his disciples.  The Bible talks about Jesus praying all the time (He kept in constant communication with God) & if Jesus did it, then we should follow his lead.

Before you pray be clear what you want or need from God.  Then find out what God has already said about it.  The easiest way to do that is to simply “Google” it.  You can also download free “God’s Promises” type apps to your smartphone.  Either way, just ask God his opinion on the subject.  All of these are great ways to get to know God, build your faith and keep out doubt – James 1:6, 7(cev)  But when you ask for something, you must have faith and not doubt. Anyone who doubts is like an ocean wave tossed around in a storm. 7-8 If you are that kind of person, you can’t make up your mind, and you surely can’t be trusted. So don’t expect the Lord to give you anything at all.

Now I know that in life there will be some times that you need God to help in a hurry, so don’t let not having a scripture promise stop you from running to God.  Just be honest and tell God you don’t know what He has said about the subject & you need His help anyway.  Your crisis will not be a surprise to God, He’ll be waiting for you to ask for His help!

Keep in mind that every good conversation is a dialog, not a monologue.  Soooo don’t do all the talking.  Insert time in your prayers to listen to what God has to say back to you.  Write down what He says because you will not remember even though you think you will.

So, here’s what you need to remember:

1.      Pray only to God in Jesus’ name – John 14:6, 13-14 (cev); “I am the way, the truth, and the life!” Jesus answered. “Without me, no one can go to the Father; Ask me, and I will do whatever you ask. This way the Son will bring honor to the Father;  I will do whatever you ask me to do.
2.      Start all prayer with praise to God because no matter what you’re praying about, you are still blessed & God has been good to you. Psalm 100:4 (cev); Be thankful and praise the Lord as you enter his temple.
3.      Tell God your problem or concern and remind Him of what He said in His Word.  Let God know that you really need His help & nobody can make this right like He can.  This is a form of worship. Matthew 7:7-8 (cev); Ask, and you will receive. Search, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened for you. 8 Everyone who asks will receive. Everyone who searches will find. And the door will be opened for everyone who knocks.
4.      Extend your faith by believing that God not only heard your prayer but has sent the solution.  Mark 11:24 (cev); Everything you ask for in prayer will be yours, if you only have faith.

Sound simple?  That’s because it is.  Yes there are things that can be added, but this simple way to pray will be powerful, get results and get your prayer life off to a good start.  Keep in mind that God is not a magician and the manifestation of your prayers depends on God’s timing and how you’re living.  You can’t be acting a fool and still expect God to answer you.  We’ll talk about that part later.

Prayer is a powerful tool & weapon because it connects you directly to God & His power so practice praying daily.  Let Him teach you about it & remember practice, practice, practice makes perfect.

Are all your prayers being answered?  Now they will be!